A second member of Parliament’s business committee has backed calls for HSBC executives to face MPs over their blocking of pension savings owed to Britons who have fled Hong Kong.
Tory MP John Cooper said the issue should ‘definitely’ be investigated amid growing pressure on the bank to explain why it is co-operating with what many consider to be political repression by the Chinese government.
‘It is an issue we should definitely be looking at,’ Cooper told the Mail.
It follows comments last week from fellow committee member Lib Dem MP Joshua Reynolds who said HSBC should appear before Parliament over the issue, branding the bank’s behaviour ‘shameful’ and accusing it of taking part in ‘injustice’.
Scrutiny: HSBC is sitting on £978m of savings owed to tens of thousands living in the UK after they escaped a crackdown on pro-democracy activists by China
HSBC is sitting on £978m of savings owed to tens of thousands living in the UK after they escaped a crackdown on pro-democracy activists by China. Standard Chartered is also estimated to have around £20m in frozen funds.
The rights group Hong Kong Watch Pension has estimated savings worth as much as £3billion were being withheld from 126,500 Hong Kongers, most of whom reside in the UK.
The banks have refused to hand over the cash, which is held through a compulsory pension scheme called the Mandatory Provident Fund, saying a legal barrier prevents them from paying out. This is disputed by campaigners and MPs.
HSBC boss Georges Elhedery has attempted to downplay the bank’s role in the blocking of the savings, saying the issue was ‘a matter of law’ and the firm has ‘no discretion’ in the matter.
But campaigners are calling on the bank and the Government to push Chinese and Hong Kong officials to reverse a decision made in 2021 to no longer accept British National (Overseas) passports as travel documents or forms of ID.
The ruling stopped tens of thousands of savers from withdrawing their pensions early if they resettle abroad.
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This article was originally published by a www.dailymail.co.uk . Read the Original article here. .